3Com's networking solutions improve services for patients and staff at NHS Walsall
Snapshot
NHS (National Health Service) Walsall is the primary care trust responsible for the health needs of the inhabitants of this English town.
It has a growing IT infrastructure that currently covers some 92 different sites – including an acute hospital, health clinics, medical centres and doctors' surgeries – and has more than 5,000 users.
The sites themselves varied from single doctor surgeries to the Trust Headquarters with more than 100 users. With each site running a mixture of networking equipment from different vendors, the previous infrastructure was complicated and costly to maintain.
The Trust also wanted to upgrade its phone system to give users all the benefits of a unified communications platform. Powerful, failsafe messaging ensures medical staff receive critical information, while advanced features such as voicemail, presence and hunt/call groups enable better collaboration between staff and provide easier communication with patients.
In addition, the Trust needed a secure, resilient wireless system so that staff on the move could access the information they needed. For medical staff, in particular, this enabled them to develop new services which deliver a better patient experience, such as mobile imaging which uses the wireless network to access X–rays and test results direct from the ward.
To simplify the management of their expanding infrastructure and reduce maintenance costs, NHS Walsall decided to consolidate on one manufacturer's platform. From their experience of the cost-effectiveness and reliability of their existing 3Com® equipment, together with the recommendation of their networking solution provider Switchshop, the choice of 3Com was clear.
The programme to update their systems started with NHS Walsall HQ and is being gradually rolled out across the Trust's remote sites. The networking infrastructure is powered by a combination of switches, including the 3Com Switch 7700, 3Com Switch 5500G and 3Com Switch 5500EI, to provide a faster, more resilient infrastructure.
Advanced voice services are powered in selected edge sites by either the 3Com® NBX or 3Com® VCX® Enterprise Server.
Currently, wireless working is largely concentrated on the acute hospital and the Trust's HQ using the 3Com Managed Wireless Solution. Centralised management is enabled by the 3Com Wireless LAN Controller WX2200s with 3Com Wireless LAN Managed Access Point 2750s and 3750s providing wireless access for the Trust's staff. Mobile working is now much easier with secure access to information, including patient records, on the move.
Together these solutions deliver a highly resilient, cost-effective network. The flexibility and performance of the 3Com solution will enable NHS Walsall to meet its ambition to establish a single communication system across all its sites and build wired and wireless networks to support voice, video conferencing and other key applications. These include sophisticated new patient administration systems, mobile diagnosis and imaging, a health portal encouraging greater collaboration between medical staff, and online reservation systems for patients to book appointments.
Challenges
NHS Walsall started its programme of network consolidation at the Trust';s HQ. The resulting transformation so delighted them that they are now rolling out the upgrade programme across all their sites.
"3Com has really taken the trouble to understand exactly what we want our network to do. They have given us the high performance, low cost solutions we need now, that will also be able to grow with us in the future. The service and support has been truly outstanding — above and beyond what we could have expected," said Mark Taylor, Associate Director of IT Services for NHS Walsall.
The demands of individual sites vary greatly. The infrastructure needed for a small doctor's surgery with three or four people is completely different to that at an acute hospital with hundreds of users. Whatever the size of operation, the Trust needed to be sure the system was resilient and fast. It had to be capable of delivering the reliable services that health care professionals demand, such as secure, remote access to colleagues and patient information.
Centralised management gives staff the option to configure and maintain the network infrastructure remotely, which simplifies administration costs and saves resources.
Initially, the wireless network was centred on the acute hospital, with 3Com wireless controllers managing over 100 3Com wireless access points.
The freedom and flexibility they offer has greatly increased staff productivity and helped medical staff deliver patient care more effectively. For example, mobile PCs equipped with PACS (Picture Archiving Communications Software) use the wireless network so medical staff can view X–rays and access test results from beside the patient's bedside.
"It's much more effective for staff to have full access to the medical portal and review results with the patients themselves. Patients like it too, and it makes for a much better patient experience," said Mark Taylor.
Wireless working is likely to play an increasingly important part in the Trust';s daily life. More wireless access points are being installed in the Trust's HQ with others due to be rolled out across the remaining remote sites.
The aim of the extended wireless network is to enable mobile staff to log on at any of the Trust's sites to access their email or patient information. The Trust is also looking at using RFID tagging for tracking valuable IT assets and vulnerable patients.
With the eventual aim of creating a single IP telephony platform, NHS Walsall has installed 3Com voice systems, a mixture of NBX and VCX servers with 3Com's SIP–compliant handsets, in more than 20 of their edge sites.
Mark Taylor, Associate Director of IT Services for NHS Walsall
Mark Taylor, Associate Director of IT Services for NHS Walsall
Healthy Networks
For their upgrade programme NHS Walsall is using a range of 3Com solutions.
3Com Switch 5500G, 5500EI and 7700
The premium 5500 family of switches provide the high resilience, availability and sophisticated security that NHS Walsall needs to run its secure, converged network. The Enhanced Image (EI) models have options to add 10-gigabit modules for increased performance. The modular Switch 7700 provides the chassis for flexible configurations to support converged applications.
3Com VCX Enterprise Communications Platform
At the core of the voice network, the 3Com VCX Enterprise provides a wide range of features based on Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). Its established reliability enables the Trust to reduce costs compared with traditional telephony platforms, while making it easier for staff to communicate and work together.
3Com NBX Platform
For smaller sites, the economical, easily scaled, standards-based IP telephony platform has high-value applications built-in.
3Com Access Points
The wireless network includes 3Com Wireless LAN Managed Access Point 2750s and 3750s (MAPs). Users can connect securely through these as they roam. Easily configured centrally and highly energy efficient, the MAPs can be plug–and–play installed with the wireless LAN switches and controllers.
3Com Wireless LAN Controller WX2200
The 3Com Wireless LAN Controller WX2200 controls the 3Com Wireless LAN MAPs. Using the 3Com Wireless Switch Manager software the MAPs can be remotely configured.
Why 3Com
Delivering mobile working
Leading price/performance
Consolidating on 3Com solutions has not only met all NHS Walsall’s requirements, but has also been highly cost-effective, as 3Com leads the way in price/performance. The upgrade programme has enabled the Trust to improve productivity and reduce costs through energy efficiency and simplified administration.
"3Com has proved its worth in value for money. It has the range of solutions to meet the different needs of individual sites — all very economically priced," comments Mark Taylor. It was also important for the Trust to have an infrastructure that would develop with them. "With 3Com we have an easily scalable, reliable solution that will expand with us — so saving costs while protecting our existing investment."
Reliable, feature-rich voice
Establishing secure, converged networks in several medical sites is already paying off, with IP–based telephony costs significantly lower than those sites using traditional phone systems. They also benefit from more advanced features, such as IM for easier collaboration. The presence module means that staff can see when others are connected to avoid delays and "voicemail tag".
Improved patient care with wireless working
New wireless services enable medical staff and patients to review results together on the ward, revolutionising the way the Trust works. Ultimately, this boosts the job satisfaction of medical staff and provides higher quality patient experience.
Healthy savings with "greener" technologies
Like any public body, NHS Walsall has to be sure it meets its "green" responsibilities. 3Com's technology leads the way in energy efficiency, so the Trust has cut energy costs. They are looking to make further savings through transport costs by introducing the 3Com teleconferencing module. "Virtual meetings will save the expense of travelling from different parts of the town. They also make it possible for people to attend meetings who otherwise couldn't," believes Mark Taylor.
Exceptional service and support
Impressive as the 3Com solutions are, NHS Walsall Associate Director of IT, Mark Taylor, is even more enthusiastic about the outstanding level of service and support he has received. "3Com's whole emphasis is on making sure we have the solutions to fit our organisation. The service and support is superb."
Mark Taylor, Associate Director of IT Services for NHS Walsall
Want to know more?
To find out how 3Com solutions are benefitting organisations like yours, visit www.3com.co.uk or call us on freephone +800 3266 3266
Goal
Secure, scalable networking infrastructure supporting IP communications and wireless working
Solution
3Com Switch 5500G, 5500EI and 7700 »
3Com VCX Enterprise Communications Platform »
33Com NBX Platform »
3Com Access Points »
3Com Wireless LAN Controller WX2200 »
Result
- Flexible, high performance networks across remote sites
- Reliable, feature-rich IP communications platform
- Greater productivity with wireless working
- Cost savings through "greener" technologies
- Simplified management
- Consolidation of mixed vendor network
